How musicians and listeners in the country are going big on Blues

The Mahindra Blues Festival is back with a formidable line up and an exciting ambience. It will held on February 11 and 12 at Mehboob Studio in Mumbai

Weeks before the festival, fans make enquiries about the line-up and ensure their season passes are in place. Some even travel to Mumbai from Bengaluru, Kolkata, Delhi, Shillong and even Anantapur to attend the Mahindra Blues Festival (MBF), held at Mehboob Studio in the second weekend of February.

“It’s a place where blues lovers of the country congregate,” says guitarist Arinjoy Sarkar, whose Kolkata-based band The Arinjoy Trio is part of the line-up this time.

To be held on February 11 and 12, this year will also feature blues legends Buddy Guy and Taj Mahal (2023 Grammy winner), the incredibly talented Christone ‘Kingfish’ Ingram and Argentine guitarist Ivan Singh. The Karan Mahajan Band, which won the Band Hunt competition, will have a special set. Buddy Guy, who is on his seventh tour of India and fifth appearance at MBF, is famously quoted as saying in 2015 that ‘The Blues lives here’. But the blues season does not end with MBF.

On March 18 and 19, the Mumbai-based National Centre for the Performing Arts (NCPA) hosts Soulful Blues. The line-up comprises Beatrice Kahl and Natalie Williams, who blend the blues, soul and jazz.

Like in many other parts of the world, the genre has a specific but devoted following in India. Some of the world’s most famous blues musicians have performed at MBF. While Taj Mahal will make a second appearance, past performers have included John Mayall, Jimmie Vaughan, Charlie Musselwhite, Kenny Wayne Shepherd, the Tedeschi Trucks Band, Beth Hart, Larkin Poe, Keb Mo, Joss Stone, Shemekia Copeland and Ana Popovic. The festival has featured Indian blues acts such as Soulmate, Blackstratblues, The Arinjoy Trio, Saturday Night Blues Band and Overdrive Trio.

Rudy Wallang, founder and guitarist of Shillong band Soulmate, says MBF has definitely been a shot in the arm. “The obvious advantage is the number of big acts who have performed here. They also go back and talk about the festival, so people abroad get to know of the blues scene in India.” Adds Arinjoy Sarkar, “I have never seen a more receptive audience.”

Before MBF was launched, Mumbai had the One Tree Music Festival, which included a blend of rock, blues and funk. The festival travelled to other cities, and also featured non-blues acts. The country has also witnessed shows by blues artistes Jeremy Spencer, Joe Beard, Dana Gillespie and Mud Morganfield, son of icon Muddy Waters.